


The True Tragedy of Duscur

by bethany81707



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
Genre: Angst, Flash Fic, Gen, Genocide, Questioning, Racism, Shared experiences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:35:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29878482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bethany81707/pseuds/bethany81707
Summary: Reyson asks Dedue about the events glossed over in the talks he had with Dimitri.
Relationships: Dedue Molinaro & Reyson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	The True Tragedy of Duscur

Dedue considered the heron tribe prince, partially troubled by the words he and King Dimitri shared. The exact reason why was what he had intended to ask the prince, but it truly was a difficult subject to broach, persecution.

“Ah, you must be Dimitri’s friend. Dedue, correct? Come, join me,” Reyson asked. Dedue nodded, following Reyson’s arm to a table he had been busy preparing.

“My apologies if my food is not up to your standard. I am no expert in cooking either meats or salads. I practice on one too much and neglect the other,” Reyson said. Dedue took a bite of the nearest dish, considering it thoughtfully.

“Try paprika on this one,” Dedue suggested.

“Paprika? That doesn’t grow in Serenes. I’ll have to see where I can get some. Anyway, Dedue, I did not ask for your company so we could talk of bird tribe cuisine. Dimitri tells me your people have been wrongly persecuted for a crime you did not commit. This is not a circumstance unknown to me,” Reyson explained.

“You speak of the Tragedy of Duscur. I do not know for certain if my people were indeed uninvolved,” Dedue explained.

“Natural, to be uncertain of events so distant. Twenty years on from the Serenes Massacre, when investigations began in earnest, the initial conclusion drawn was that the Mad King Ashnard planned the events, in order to acquire my sister Lillia for use in his equally terrifying and terrible plan. However, testimony from my long lost brother Rafiel later confirmed that it was in fact the Begnion Senate who were responsible, with the Mad King being a mere profiteer. Tell me, who else is in contention for being responsible for your Tragedy?” Reyson asked.

“...We have reason to believe members of House Kleiman took issue with the attempted reforms of King Lambert. Additionally, Lady Patricia appears to have made arrangements to spare herself from being killed in the Tragedy. Regardless, it is irresponsible to continue to cling to hate when the real culprit may never be identified. Dimitri has decided to cease investigations,” Dedue explained.

“C-cease investigations? I am not one to deny the danger of giving in to one’s anger and lust for vengeance- truly, I wanted nothing more than the destruction of Begnion until it had an answer for the massacre of my people- but surely peace between the peoples of Faerghus and Duscur cannot truly be cultivated with the miasma of… what was it your people were accused of, again?” Reyson asked.

“Kingslaying. The Tragedy of Duscur was the assassination of King Lambert and his retinue of knights,” Dedue said.

“Sound enough, my people were accused of the assassination of Apostle Misaha. Wait… did you say that is the event given the name Tragedy? Then what is it that the destruction of your people is called?” Reyson asked, a frantic note in his tone.

“A just response. No one has ever given it a name. Dimitri’s friend Felix once described it as the punishment of Duscur, I suppose,” Dedue said.

“No. Assassination of a King is not to be met with the destruction of a people. The Serenes Massacre was wrong, and I now know the people of Begnion believed that more than anyone else. I have heard stories of the men and women who participated sinking into depression, knowing that they robbed Tellius of a peaceful tribe in a grieving rage. Even knowing it was my own kin, my family and subjects, that were lost in that disaster, I mourn the pain those poor citizens will bear on their hearts for the rest of their lives. Do the people of Faerghus not share in that guilt?” Reyson asked.

“They do not. It is unfortunate that Duscur was lost, but as long as we did not lose sight of dealing with the Adrestians, we could unite under a common cause,” Dedue explained.

“Adrestia? That was not a name responsible for the loss of your home,” Reyson observed.

“The Mad Empress Edelgard had declared war for a cause understandable only to her, bringing suffering onto her own people and those of Faerghus in pursuit of intangible and unattainable goals. She had to be stopped before true peace could be discussed,” Dedue said.

“Is that your belief? I have had the pleasure of talking with an Edelgard here, and she has been nothing but polite, rational and in pursuit of reasonable goals, if hampered by her opposition amidst her own ranks. Did you ever find out about that faction, the one with the terribly long name?” Reyson asked.

“...There were multiple factions in Edelgard’s army?” Dedue asked.

“Do you Faerghans do any investigation? Not a good quality to have in a society that believes destruction is a just response to the crimes that befall it. Dimitri spoke of the strong and the weak, guiding the latter to his vision of the future with a nurturing hand. Perhaps his vision and that of the people he leads might not be as congruent as he believes,” Reyson said.

“No. Dimitri believes forcing his ideals on even a single other person is nothing more than self-righteousness,” Dedue said firmly.

“Indeed. He seems to have given you his ideals quite freely, however,” Reyson said.

“That’s… that’s because he saved my life, in the Tragedy… punishment,” Dedue objected.

“Do you believe that to be a fair deal? He saves your life in an event his people ought never have committed in the first place, you dedicate yourself entirely to upholding the ideals that led to that event occurring and might well have brought the same suffering onto these Adrestians?” Reyson asked. Dedue had no answer for him.

“...I owe my life to King Tibarn. But he thinks of my beliefs as he chooses his policies. Your beliefs appear to have been abandoned at the door,” Reyson told him.

“What can I do about that?” Dedue asked.

“Ask others of Fodlan. Edelgard, any friends you have… perhaps Dimitri himself,” Reyson suggested.


End file.
